Generally, people don’t really make changes in their lives unless the road they’re on is too difficult to walk on anymore. Since there’s no way I can actually walk on someone else’s behalf, all I can do is help someone see that the road they walk is a treacherous one. The fact is, they have to be the ones to move their legs forward.

Twelve-step programs require acknowledging powerlessness. But, before someone can acknowledge powerlessness, he or she has to first recognize that he or she is in fact powerless to the situation at hand. From my perspective, if someone doesn’t see the harm his or her own behaviors are causing, then what more can I do?

For starters, I don’t judge. Struggling with an addiction or depression or anxiety is akin to walking each day with Hell strapped to your back. I know from my own experience that each disorder, by itself, is something I don’t wish on anyone. But, when they’re combined, as they often are, then that’s a sentence for which I just don’t think there’s a crime. The other thing I try to do is provide hope that there is opportunities for overcoming these insidious disorders. And there is, but…

Anyone can overcome anything, as long as they are willing to put in the work and be responsible for their health. If anyone seeks to recover from something but asks others to carry their burden on their behalf, then of course they won’t recover. We all have to do our part by supporting and educating ourselves about others’ struggles, but no one can be healthy for anyone else.

I want everyone to be as healthy as is possible. I also wish we could end addiction. Really, it’s totally possible to rid the world of addiction’s treachery.